Lily plant named Gold Dust

ABSTRACT

A new variety of Asiatic hybrid lily plant of the chalice type particularly distinguished by its one-quarter to one-half inch wide golden yellow stripe which runs longitudinally down the middle of each of the red-orange petals of its five to six inch diameter flowers, the flowers being borne in raceme arrangement on strong, upright pedicels, usually with one bud or flower on each pedicel, carried on strong stems which grow up to three feet tall, depending upon the age of the bulb.

BACKGROUND OF THE NEW PLANT

My new lily plant originated as a mutant seedling of the varietyEnchantment (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 862) and was discovered by me at mynursery in Arcata, Calif., among a field of the variety Enchantmentbeing grown for commercial purposes. The pollen parent of this new lilyis unknown but the similarity to the variety Enchantment prompted me toasexually propagate the new plant for study of its growth habit andblooming characteristics, with the result that I have found the newplant to have distinctive and advantageous characteristics whichdistinguish it from Enchantment and appear to make it a valuableaddition to the field of commercial lily plant culture. Furtherpropagation of this new lily plant through successive generations bymeans of scales and tissue culture at Arcata, Calif., has shown that itsdistinctive characteristics hold true from generation to generation andappear to be firmly fixed.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

This new variety of lily plant is illustrated by the accompanyingdrawing which, in full color, shows the upper portion of a full grownblooming plant in the upper view and a close-up view of a fully openedbloom in the lower view, the color rendition being as nearly true as canbe reasonably obtained by conventional photographic procedures.

DESCRIPTION OF THE NEW PLANT

The following is a detailed description of my new variety of lily plantas observed at Arcata, Calif., with color designations according to TheR.H.S. Colour Chart published by The Royal Horticultural Society ofLondon, England, and developed with cooperation of The British ColourCouncil.

THE PLANT

Origin: Seedling.

Parentage:

Seed parent.--Enchantment.

Pollen parent.--Unknown.

Classification: Chalice type, Asiatic hybrid.

Form: A tall, single stem from each bulb.

Height: 1 to 3 feet, depending upon age of the bulb.

Growth: Upright and sturdy, with excellent strength.

Stem size: From about 1/4 inch diameter at the base when the plant is ata height of about one foot, to about 3/4 inch diameter at the base whenthe plant has a height of about 3 feet.

Foliage: Quantity -- abundant.

Size of leaf.--3 to 7 inches long and about 1/4 to 3/4 inch wide on thestem; at the flower cluster, the leaves are 3 in number and about 11/2to 23/4 inches long and about 1 to 11/4 inches wide.

Shape of leaf.--Lanceolate.

Texture.--Leathery.

Aspect.--Smooth.

Aerial bulbils produced in the leaf axils:

Size.--About 1/8 to 1/4 inch in diameter.

Color.--Maroon.

Stem bulblets (under ground):

Occurrence.--4 to 12 on each healthy, normal plant at digging time.

Size.--About 1/4 to 1 inch in diameter.

Color.--White.

Bulbs:

Size.--About 1 to 3 inches in diameter.

Color.--White.

THE BUD

Form: Elongate-oblong, with an obtuse apex.

Size: About 2 to 3 inches long and about 1/2 to 3/4 inches in diameter.

Opening rate: Normal, tertiary and secondary buds opening successively.

Color: When sepals first divide and petals begin to unfurl --Reddish-Orange with a Golden Yellow stripe down the middle of the bud.

Pedicel: Strong and generally upright and angled about 60° from thevertical.

Length.--21/2 to 4 inches.

Number of buds.--Usually one, occasionally two on each pedicel.

THE FLOWER

Blooming habit: Annual, blooming profusely in June.

Size of flower: Medium to large, averaging 6 to 9 inches in diameter andabout 1/2 inch in depth.

Shape: Generally flat with uniformly spaced petals in star arrangement.

Borne: From large bulbs, the inflorescence has a raceme arrangement forthe first 2 or 3 pedicels, each of which has 1 or 2 buds, and at thetop, the inflorescence breaks into an umbel cluster of 2 to 8 pedicelseach with 1 bloom. Small bulbs often produce an umbel cluster only, eachpedicel having a single bloom. The size of the bulb and its culturalcare will determine the number of buds and blooms to be found on aparticular inflorescence. From large bulbs, this plant may produce 6 to8 open blooms at the same time and 2 to 3 open blooms in the top umbelcluster.

Petalage: Normal, 3 sepals and 3 petals.

Form.--Elliptical, with obtuse apex, prominent nectariferous grooves anda central longitudinal furrow bisecting each petal. The petals are about3/4 to 1 inch in width and the edges are very slightly crinkled andcurled inwardly with recurved tips.

Color.--Upper side -- the background color of the petal is Orange-Red,RHS 30A and the majority of the petals, excluding 1/8 to 1/4 inch of theouter edge, is streaked with Yellow-Orange, RHS 15A; with theYellow-Orange stripes varying in width, end-to-end, from about 1/4 to1/2 inch wide. Under side -- the outer edge of the petal is Orange-Red,RHS 31A, and the middle of the petal is Yellow-Orange, RHS 23B. Theflower color may vary, either lighter or darker, according to the soiland climate in which the plant is grown.

Papillae.--Present on the petals and from 4 to 8 in number.

Texture.--Leathery.

Aspect.--Velvety.

Discoloration: The flower color becomes more orangish and fades as theblossom matures.

Effect of weather: Generally the flower is not affected by wet weather,but ages as temperature rises.

Fragrance: None.

Persistence: The flowers tend to hang on and dry.

Lasting quality: 3 to 6 weeks on the plant, depending upon the size ofthe bulb and the temperature; 10 days to 2 weeks as a cut flower.

REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS

Stamens:

Anthers.--Number: six. Arrangement: orderly around the pistil. Length:about 1/2 inch. Color: Gray-Orange, RHS 172A.

Filaments.--Length: about 2 inches.

Pistils:

Number.--One.

Style.--About 2 inches long.

Stigma.--Color -- very pale yellow.

Ovary: Contained in a schizocarp, about 11/2 to 2 inches long and about1 inch in diameter, dehiscing into thirds and containing 6 rows of seedsof the usual shape.

I claim:
 1. A new and distinct variety of Asiatic hybrid lily plant,substantially as herein shown and described, characterized by generallyyellow-orange appearing blooms of medium size having golden yellowstripes extending the length of each petal, on each side of a centralfurrow, over an orange-red background.